The present invention is in the field of garments and other devices formed of a flexible covering over a supporting frame and worn for protection of a person from weather. More specifically, the invention relates to covered structures for use as a cap or hat and scalable for use as a tent, with the one serving as a promotional device for the other.
Billed caps and hats, including self-adjusting caps, are not new in the art. For example, Han, U.S. Pat. No. 5,926,850 discloses a cap that can be worn by different wearers having a hat size within a predetermined range of hat sizes. An elastic sweat band attaches to the bottom edge of the crown member. As the sweat band elongates, the bottom edge of the crown member expands, permitting the cap to fit a range of head sizes. Similarly, Cho, U.S. Pat. No. 5,715,540, discloses a cap capable of being worn by wearers having a range of head sizes. A crown member is constructed with a plurality of gores, some of which are constructed with uniaxially stretchable fabric, with an elastic sweat band attached to the bottom edge of the crown member. As the sweat band elongates, the bottom edge of the crown member and the elastic gore members expand, permitting the cap to fit a range of sizes. Further, Beckerman, U.S. Pat. No. 5,615,415, also discloses a cap capable of fitting a range of head sizes. A crown member comprises triangular shaped panels attached to each other with an elastic sweat band attached to the bottom edge. A gore opposite the visor portion is constructed of an elastic material. As the sweat band elongates, the bottom edge of the crown member and the elastic gore expands, allowing the cap to fit a range of sizes.
The Deegan patent, U.S. Pat. No. 1,984,521 discloses a cap that maintains a desired shape. The flexible body portion and stay member may be bent to a desired form and be held by the bendable stay member. Alternative embodiment includes a visor, a plurality of gores stitched together, and pockets for the stays. The stays are bent to form and support the shape of the cap crown. Another cap maintaining a shape is Ford, U.S. Pat. No. 2,418,764, which discloses a cap with skeleton frames adapted to be inserted into caps made of flexible material for supporting the cap in a predetermined shape.
Caps and hats, such as baseball caps and the like, are also used in the art as novelty and promotional items. Logos and emblems, advertising and promotional messages, and other attention getting appurtenances are commonplace on billed and other types of caps and hats. For example, U.S. Pat. No. D401,738 to Scerbo and U.S. Pat. No. 5,454,120 to Rowlands both disclose the attachment of logos or other graphic displays to a baseball type billed cap. More extreme examples of promotional and attention getting appurtenances incorporated into caps and hats include: U.S. Pat. No. 6,000,063 to Sullivan disclosing a cap on which is mounted a three-dimensional model of a team insignia; U.S. Pat. No. 4,832,647 to Perlman disclosing a cap on which is mounted a pair of clapping hands that move, make noise and display a slogan; and U.S. Pat. No. 4,586,280 to Dane disclosing a novelty advertising billed cap having a simulated miniature beer tap and constantly filling beer mug mounted on the visor.
Although each of the above devices discloses features that may be useful to protect a person""s head as well as serving as a platform on which an advertising or promotional item may be mounted or presented, there is still the need for alternative caps or hats that combine novel features to function both as headwear and as promotional items.
Specifically, in view of the many different products and entities that hats and caps are used to advertise and promote, it would be useful to have a cap or hat that is a promotional item advertising a covered structure such as a tent.
The covered structure of the present invention is an architectural design useful for multiple purposes, depending on the dimensions or scale of the elements and the materials used. For example, the covered structure is useful as either a tent or a cap when practiced using appropriate dimensions and materials as selectable by one of ordinary skill in the art of the desired use. However, as specifically disclosed herein, the present invention is a covered structure useful as a cap or hat. The practice of the invention for this use is accomplishable by the selection of appropriate dimensions and materials, and is described below.
The cap or hat includes a covering and framework formed of flexible materials and is worn by a person as protection from the weather and as a promotional item. The framework comprises a stay-band and a plurality of ribs constructed of a flexible material. Because the stay-band is not necessarily circular, it may have diameters of different sizes. The stay band is formed into a loop having a circumference and diameter. In addition to being flexible, the stay band may also be slightly elastic, allowing the circumference to be slightly variable. The flexibility and elasticity enables the stay-band to conform in circumference to a range of head shapes and sizes.
The ribs are also constructed of a flexible material, each rib having a length, two ends and a mid-section. The length of the ribs is greater than the diameter of the stay-band. Each rib is fixed to the stay-band at both ends, and disposed so that one end of each rib is fixed to the stay-band at a position on the circumference opposite the position where the other end of the rib is fixed to the stay band. In this configuration, the midpoints of the ribs intersect to form a dome-shaped frame. The ribs may be individually separate components, or two or more of the ribs may be integral with each other. In a preferred embodiment, all of ribs are integral with each other. To practice the present structure as a cap, three or four ribs are typically used. However, the number of ribs to be practiced in the cap is also a factor of the larger structure it is intended to mimic.
The crown is constructed of fabric, with the fabric being fitted over the frame and fixed to the stay-band. The crown is separate from the framework of the rest of the cap, and does not form part of the structure of the framework. Typically, the crown of the cap is made of a stretch fabric (e.g., LYCRA (du Pont de Nemours and Company)), spandex and other stretch fabrics) as is known in the art and commercially available. The structure""s crown is a single piece, and when made of a stretch material, is stretched over the framework. The crown can be a single piece of fabric, or may be a patch-work of fabric pieces. However, the crown is not required to be made of separate gore components. Optionally, the crown may be constructed of a fabric that has properties useful for a specific purpose, such as a water-proof fabric, a UV radiation blocking or UV radiation passing fabric, or any other fabric having weather or environment protective or enhancing property.
The hat structure of the present invention has a brim attached to it proximate the stay-band. The brim may be directly or indirectly attached to the stay-band. The brim may only partially surround the circumference of the stay-band 22 in the manner of a billed hat, like a baseball cap. Optionally, the brim or bill is detachable in the manner of a visor, and also may be separately useful for that purpose.
The structure""s ribs are joined or held together proximate their midpoints. The midpoints of the ribs may be joined together in a relatively fixed or permanent fashion, or may be moveable relative to each other. For example, the ribs may be integral with each other and formed from a single piece of material to provide ribs having a permanently fixed relationship. Alternatively, the ribs may be rotatable at their midpoints by means of a fastener through their midpoints to allow the ribs to be collapsible upon one another. In a further alternative, a subset of the ribs or portions of the ribs may be integrally constructed. To provide a structure wherein the configuration of the stay-band in the framework is substantially circular, the ribs are of substantially equal length. To provide a structure wherein the configuration of the stay-band in the framework is out-of-round (e.g., oval), at least one of the ribs is a different length than the others.
The covered structure of the present invention is also an architectural design useful for multiple purposes, depending on the dimensions and materials used. For example, the covered structure is useful as a tent when practiced using appropriate dimensions and materials as selectable by one of ordinary skill in the art of the desired use. The present structure is designed to incorporate openings appropriate for use as a tent, including openings for use as windows, vents, and doors. Additionally, a fabric floor may be incorporated into the covered structure when used as a tent. The floor can be practiced by having its outer perimeter edge join with the perimeter edge of the crown. The joint of the fabric of the crown with the fabric of the floor serves as the stay-band to help hold the ribs in their arcuate configuration and maintain the dome shape of the structure.
A particular benefit of the present invention is that, even though the covered structure may be practiced as different embodiments (e.g., a cap and a tent), because the different embodiments visually resemble each other, they can be made evocative each of the other. The benefit of this is that use of the covered structure as one item (e.g., the cap) can be useful in advertising the second item (e.g., the tent). Therefore, for example, the cap may be used as an advertising gimmick for the tent. Alternatively, if features of the present design are utilized in a larger structure, such as a canopy or even a pavilion, the present cap by its analogous features can elicit recognition of the larger structure, and serve as a promotional item for it.
If the present structural design is scaled up for a larger application (e.g., a tent), the structure provides space in the covering for the incorporation of openings, such as windows, vents, and doors appropriate for use in a larger structure. Additionally, a fabric floor may be incorporated into the covered structure when used as a tent. The floor can be practiced by having its outer perimeter edge join with the perimeter edge of the crown. The joint of the fabric of the crown with the fabric of the floor serves as the stay-band to help hold the ribs in their arcuate configuration and maintain the dome shape of the structure.